The Obscure Logic of the Heart by Priya Basil

The Obscure Logic of the Heart by Priya Basil

Softcover/paperback

Book has not been read but in a 2nd hand condition.

Synopsis:

A devoted Muslim daughter, a secret relationship, an impossible dilemma...

Lina Merali has always been the apple of her father's eye. When she meets Anil Mayur, a wealthy, cultured and decidedly liberal student of architecture from Kenya's Asian community, the intensity of her feelings for someone so different takes her by surprise. She is political and he is not; she is of modest background and he is not; she is a Muslim and he is not...

While Lina's parents still dream of a suitable boy for their eldest daughter, she engages in an intricate game of deceit to hide her blossoming relationship. When Lina's mother chances upon a suitcase of their love letters, a moral chasm threatens to tear the family and the lovers apart.

The dilemma becomes ever more complex as Lina's work for the UN exposes her to the corruption in Kenya where the Mayur family have close links to the ruling party. As the stakes escalate Lina must decide where her loyalties lie. Is it the case, as she thinks at one point, 'that the world, finally, is what lies closest to your heart?' Or, the novel asks, are there greater considerations, which must trump all other allegiances?

Bold, lyrical and deeply moving, The Obscure Logic of the Heart interweaves two narratives: one intimate, one epic. From the streets of Birmingham to the plains of Kenya, and the refugee camps of Sudan, this page-turning story examines the tumultuous lives of two people trapped between the dictates of faith, family and love.